Although it didn’t receive as much fanfare as tequila and RTD cocktails last year, rum delivered a solid 3% consumption growth rate in 2020. The category accounted for more than 24 million cases with growth led by household names like Bacardi, Captain Morgan, and Malibu, according to data from Beverage Information Group.
We took a deeper dive into the data for the fourth largest category by consumption rates to determine the top ten markets for rum consumption based on nine-liter cases sold in 2020.
1. Florida: 2.8 Million Cases
The Miami-Ft. Lauderdale metropolitan area also ranked second in the country in consumption at 896k cases.
2. California: 2.4 Million Cases
Though it comes in at second place, California ranked No. 32 per capita in rum consumption for 2020.
3. New York: 1.9 Million Cases
New York City was by far the top city in the country for rum consumption, accounting for 829k cases alone. The New York-Newark-Edison metropolitan area consumed 2 million cases.
4. Texas: 1.1 Million Cases
The Lone Star State was near the bottom of the list in per capita consumption at No. 48, consuming 56.5 cases per 1,000 Texans.
5. New Jersey: 1.06 Million Cases
New Jersey accounted for a 4.3% share of total rum consumption in 2020.
6. Illinois: 1.03 Million Cases
The Chicago-Naperville-Jolliet area was the third ranked metropolitan area for rum consumption, accounting for 744k cases.
7. Michigan: 1.01 Million Cases
Michigan represents the top control state for rum consumption, taking the spot from Pennsylvania in 2019.
8. Pennsylvania: 890k Cases
Pennsylvania is the only state in the top ten to see a drop in rum consumption from 2019. The Keystone State consumed 128k less cases in 2020, marking a 12.6% decrease.
9. Minnesota: 781k Cases
Minnesota was one of the top five states in the country for per capita consumption of rum with 189 cases consumed per 1,000 Minnesotans.
10. Massachusetts: 716k Cases
Rum consumption in Massachusetts grew 4% from 2019, with the state consuming 27k more cases in 2020.
If you’d like to learn more about the top markets in beverage alcohol, check out our other summaries: Top Ten States for Tequila Sales or the Top Ten States for RTD Cocktail Sales.